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Treven Wax recently wrote that there is a theologian we should all know and I agree.

George Eldon Ladd is said to be one of the most influential scholars of the 1900’s. It was Ladd who popularized the view of the kingdom as two dimensional by describing it with the “already inaugurated -not yet consummated” paradigm.

He argues that there is a tension between the already realized and future eschatology throughout the entire New Testament. While the future Kingdom of God already has broken into the present reality, its fullness remains to be consummated with the second coming.

Now deceased, Ladd is considered a premier Kingdom theologian and any serious study of eschatology should include time invested to read “The Gospel of the Kingdom” and “The Presence of the Future“.

Other great books that I can personally recommend:

“The Blessed Hope“- His central thesis is the second coming is The Blessed Hope, not a pre-tribulational rapture.

Charisma News Online posted this interview Wednesday. The NAR movement is experiencing media scrutiny with the entrance of Rick Perry on the national scene.

The movement is known for its missional purpose to “Reclaim The 7 Mountains of Culture” as the means to re-chistianize America and bring Kingdom governance to all the Nations.

Even more controversial is the belief that modern-day Apostles are to play the primary role in bringing this endeavor to fruition. Some advocate that each of the 7 cultural mountains are actually “apostolic spheres” of authority.

“If the world is to be won, these are the (7) mountains that mold the culture and the minds of men. Whoever controls these mountains controls the direction of the world and the harvest therein.” — Lance Wallnau

It’s easy then to see why the movement is so politically invested and controversial.

RGH

“A new charismatic Christian movement that seeks to take dominion over politics, business and culture in preparation for the end times and Jesus’ return is becoming more of a presence in American politics.”

That’s how an NPR article that discusses C. Peter Wagner’s New Apostolic Reformation theology starts out. NPR quickly dives into the fact that “several apostles affiliated with the movement” either helped plan or spoke at Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s prayer event, The Response, at Houston’s Reliant Stadium in August. On the Fresh Air broadcast, Wagner discussed the NAR and its mission with host Terry Gross. Here are some of the highlights of the interview, but you can read Wagner’s fuller explanation of the NAR in a column Charisma News published weeks ago: “We believe in working with any—with whatever political system there is,” Wagner said when asked about dominionism and acquiring leadership positions in government. “In America, it’s democracy and working with the administrative, judicial and legislative branches of the government, the way they are, but to have as many kingdom-minded people in influence in each one of these branches of government as possible so that the blessings of the kingdom will come.”

Gross asked Wagner about people in American politics being possessed by demons. His response: He doesn’t like to use the word “possessed” because that means people don’t have any power of their own. Instead, Wagner said, he prefers words like afflicted or demonized. “But there are people who—yes, who are—who are directly affected by demons, not only in politics, but also in the arts, in the media and religion in the Christian church,” he told Gross. Gross also asked Wagner about statements made by Alice Patterson, a New Apostolic Reformation leader, while on stage at The Response. Patterson called the Democratic Party a demon structure. “I personally would not endorse each one of her statements and especially the statement about the Democratic Party being demonized, any more than the Republican Party is,” Wagner said. “I mean, I believe there’s a lot of demonic control over Congress in general thatneeds to be dispersed.”

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Must see video. As a brother sings “I’ll Be Gone” song about “the rapture”, congregants begin running the aisle, shouting, slinging a coat over the singers head, walking the pew, tumbling on the platform, culminating with a final flip into the baptistry!

Watch as the singer himself loses it in laughter during the rapturous excitement!

Paul the Apostle proclaimed the gospel of the first coming of Christ to hopeless sinners and comforted the saints with the mystery of the second coming. Unfortunately, this pattern has been reversed as many proclaim the second coming of Christ to sinners and the first coming to the saints.

Tomorrow morning, intellectually honest exegetes will once again have the responsibility to clean up months of eschatological goooofiness.

Now read this excerpt from “Cleaning Up After Harold” and then rush out and buy Gary DeMars excellent book,”Last Days Madness”.

rgh

“History teaches us that previous generations caught up in eschatological fervor often fell away from Christ when their deeply held beliefs about the end of the world didn’t pan out. While Camping must answer for his false teaching at the end of the age, Reformational Christians are facing a pastoral problem come Sunday morning: how can we apply the salve of the Gospel to the wounded sheep who will be wandering aimlessly, having discovered that what they thought was true (so true they were willing to upend their lives over it) was not? If this isn’t true, they might reason, then what other deeply held beliefs and convictions and doctrines and hopes might not be true?

It’s at this point that we need to be ready to provide a reasonable defense of our reasonable faith. Christianity is not founded upon some complex Bible code that needs years of analysis to reveal its secret. Christianity is about a man who claimed to be God, who died in full public view as a criminal, and was inexplicably raised from the dead three days later appearing to a multitude of witnesses. When his followers, who witnessed his resurrection, began speaking of it publicly, they connected the prophecies of the Old Testament to the life and death and resurrection of this man who claimed the power to forgive sins. This is the heart of the Christian faith, the message that deserves to be featured on billboards, sides of buses, and pamphlets all over the world. It is also the message that needs to be reinvested into the hearts and lives of those who found hope and meaning in Harold Camping’s latest bad idea.”

Here it is, the next best thing to”Pet Salvation”. Saturday is “Judgment Day” and the misguided quacks are getting national attention when interviewed by news agencies. One lady today said “The Bible Guarantees” the rapture will take place on Saturday.

Do not fear, here are two back up plans for those who prefer atheist caring for their beloved pets over the “not quite ready christians” who get “left behind” when the “firstfruits-Silent Rapture” event takes place. [You gotta watch the interview on the second clip. Must see stuff!]

Even better, since history bears out date setters are consistently goofy and wrong, ie 88 Reasons Christ will return in 88 – Harold Campings 1994 first miscalculated date-the ’92 poster and then all of Hal Lindsay books, you are able to now purchase “Pet after Care” in ten-year increments. No worries!

Whats even more pathetic, entire churches are using this “end times hype” as a witnessing tool in the form of tracts. Seems they completely missed the biblical substance of the Gospel being the proclamation of “The first coming of Christ!” You know, the virgin birth, sinless life, substitutionary death on the cross and resurrection from the dead stuff that the original Apostles preached. oooooops!

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About Richard Hanner

The husband of Regina, the father of Amanda, the grandfather of Andrew, Anna and Aaron, a church planter who now has the honor of serving some of the Kingdom’s finest Christ Followers in LaGrange, Georgia. [more]

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“ANTAGONIZ” is a term derived from the greek word group translated “Contend” in Jude 3. It reflects strenuous effort put forth in the struggle to maintain guardianship of the Historic-Apostolic Gospel that’s been delivered once and for all to the stewardship of the Church. [more]